Despite the cold, wet weather across Indiana this past week, corn planting progressed another 9% and soybeans another 7%. Indiana corn and soybeans are both 51% planted according to USDA’s Crop Progress report released Monday afternoon.
Struggles continue for farmers up north. Farmer Tom Griffiths sent HAT a text message this past week saying that Noble County probably isn’t even 1% planted at this point, but he’s not worried because they’re used to it up there. After he sent that picture of his field, I asked when I could get a boat out on Lake Griffiths!
In West Central Indiana, Ryan Rippy checked in from his farms in Fountain, Montgomery, and Tippecanoe counties on Monday.
“I’m out doing some corn burndown today on some of the earlier corn that we had planted. It’s just coming out of the ground, looking pretty good. I’m pretty happy with it. The ground conditions are a little wetter than what we had anticipated as we’ve gotten out here. I was hoping to be able to maybe start planting beans again (Tuesday), but it’s pretty wet. We’re probably looking at maybe Wednesday or Thursday this week, but still hopeful that we can maybe do some bean planting later on in the week.”
More rain last week has kept Dubois County farmer JR Roesner out of the field, but he says it’s starting to get dry.
“Looks like we’ll be back in doing some post spraying, side dressing this week here. The weather looks favorable for that.”
Roesner is currently not on his southern Indiana farm but instead in Washington, D.C. fulfilling his duties as a member of the National Corn Board and the Indiana Corn Growers Association.
“This week we’re out in D.C. pushing for year-round E15, trying to get that across the finish line and give us a great win for corn farmers across the country,” Roesner tells Hoosier Ag Today.
The House is expected to take up a vote this week on year-round E15 legislation.
Diving deeper into the statewide numbers from Monday’s USDA report, Indiana corn and soybeans are both 28% emerged.
Indiana’s winter wheat crop has a 72% good to excellent condition rating.
Nationally, corn is 57% planted while soybeans are 49% complete.
